unmasking redd
The meeting of the Conference of the Parties to the UNFCC that took place in Bali, in December 2007, resulted in a commitment to include ‘avoided deforestation’ or ‘Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and Degradation’ (REDD) as part of the post-2012 UN deal on climate change.
FoEI is very concerned about the way in which REDD is being promoted. We maintain that these proposals, especially those that argue that forests should be included in carbon markets as offsets, pose huge risks to forest-dependent communities and the environment. In 2008, REDD moved up the political agenda extremely rapidly, due in part to FoEI’s effective advocacy and mobilization work with allies, governments and the media. Our concerns about REDD are now widely acknowledged.
REDD has been one of the priorities for FoEI since the UN Climate Summit in Bali, where FoEI exposed the reality behind the World Bank’s Carbon Partnership Facility. Responding to the information gap on REDD, we were quick to commission and distribute thorough analysis: FoEI’s Publication 'REDD Myths' has been widely distributed and is available in three languages. We launched the report at the climate talks in Poznan, at a very well attended side event. We also joined with Indigenous Peoples at an impromptu protest reacting to the removal of their rights from the draft text on REDD. Finally, we also published a profound study on the state of the world's forests in a changing climate.
